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Shaq's son described what LeBron Jr. goes through

Andrew Joseph
Published 7:30 p.m. ET July 26, 2018

Shareef O'Neal knows exactly what it's like to grow up as the son of an NBA legend. Shareef, who is Shaquille O'Neal's 18-year-old son, is set to be a freshman at UCLA next season after de-committing from Arizona.

Shareef caught up with LeBron James' 13-year-old son, LeBron "Bronny" James Jr., this week, and the UCLA commit came away impressed with the young basketball phenom.

He saw Bronny as a kid he relates too. Shareef explained that connection in an Instagram post on Thursday.

Bronny … One kid I can relate to a lot … we both kind of have it the same way , being the son of an NBA legend isn't easy and to get all of this at a young age is a real challenge to adjust to.. Bronny has it a little bit worse than I do, but the difference between him and I, he can back his up at such a young age .. when I would get hate from people in the crowd at 14/15 years old .. I would choke up and wouldn't play my game and I'm still getting the hang of it .. it's all a journey … this kid has it all! I'm looking forward to seeing him kill it for the rest of his career ! Love

Though just heading into eighth grade, Bronny is already regarded among the top basketball players in his class. His team, the North Coast Blue Chips, is coming off a national title at the USBA Championships.

Bronny still has plenty of time to develop as a basketball player, but as Shareef pointed out, he's on the right track.